The last time?
by Flying Squad
Summary: Diane runs out of Cheers, after breaking up with Sam when a twist of fate threatens to pull them back together..
1. the last time?

**The last time?**

"This is the last time you will ever see me!" shouted Diane as she left Sam and Cheers forever. Sam started to go to door but hesitated and resisted. Diane stopped on the stairs, about to turn back, then remembering how Sam had hurt her, fled into the road.

Sam heard a screech of car brakes outside and sudden screaming. He ran out of the bar and up the stairs, to see a lifeless body lying in the middle of the road.

It was Diane.

"Diane!" he screamed, running towards her.

He knelt down beside her, studying her face and body. She was so still, he thought. He slowly put his hand to her head, from where blood was seeping, forming a red pool around her.

"Diane? Diane, honey can you hear me?".

No response. He dared not move her, he remembered her once telling him that moving someone with a head injury was one of the worst things you could do to them.

"Keep them still and warm". Her words echoed around his head. Still and warm.

He looked around. A bystander was calling an ambulance, the car driver was shell-shocked into silence and stillness, barely able to stammer the words 'I'm sorry'.

"We need to keep her still and warm" said Sam "Do you have a jacket or a blanket?" he asked the car driver. The driver returned with a picnic blanket, which Sam quickly wrapped her in. he also took off his jacket and folded it, placing it under her head. He tried to stop the blood with his hands, covering them desperately, staining them red.

Sam could hear the sound of sirens blazing. The ambulance stopped and two paramedics came out, rushing to Diane, moving Sam out of the way.

All he could do was watch, he thought.

As the lifted Diane onto the stretcher, Sam asked if he could ride with them.

"She's my girlfriend" He said, although if truth be told, they had just broken up.

"Okay. Jump in"

Sam did so and did what they said. The paramedics checked her breathing and tried to stop her head bleeding. Sam watched all of this, tears rolling down his face. He remembered telling the bar flies that he would never ever cry over a woman. Diane wasn't just some woman to him though, she was Diane, the love of his life, and he wasn't prepared to let her go.

As they arrived at the hospital, Sam had to step back again. he let them through. Diane was hooked up to an air bag and had bandages on her head. She looked so different, so broken.

He ran to try to keep up with the paramedics as they rushed her to the ER. Two doctors suddenly joined the paramedics and they explained the situation.

"Diane Chambers, 34 years old. Hit by a car. Head trauma, possible internal bleeding"

Internal bleeding, they hadn't told him that. He tried to go inot the ER, but was stopped by a receptionist.

"That's my girlfriend! You have to let me through!"

"Sir, you can't got in there. You'll have to wait in the relative's room. We'll keep you informed, she's in good hands"

"Diane! Diane!" He started screaming, before breaking down in the corridor. The receptionist signalled a young intern over, who picked him up and took him to the waiting room".

Sam had fallen asleep on two chairs in the waiting room. A cup of coffee that the young intern had brought him hours ago was stone cold. The hospital was pitch black now, part from a few lights in the distant hall ways.

The young intern came back, as she closed the door, Sam stirred from his sleep. "Mr Malone. We managed to stabilise Miss Chambers and we've moved her to a different room. She's still unconscious but she's doing much better. I can take you there now"

A sleepy Sam nodded, getting up and following the intern. As she led him through the corridors, Sam couldn't begin to think about what he would say to her, or what he would do if she didn't pull through.

The young intern stopped at room 243 and pointed to Diane, letting Sam go in. "Call me if there's any problems".

Sam slowly opened the door. He saw Diane, hooked up to a monitor, stitches in her head, tubes going in, helping her breathe. Arm in a cast, leg elevated, clearly broken. He picked up her chart and read what was wrong with her. Broken ankle, fractured wrist, head injury, cracked left rib, punctured lung.

My Diane, he thought. She had been broken like a twig...

Sam made himself comfortable in the plasitc backed chair next to Diane's bed and began talking to her.

"I'm so sorry Diane, so so sorry"

Sam looked down, tears just spilling down his cheeks.

"Sam?" whispered Diane, her voice tainted with pain

Sam cupped his hands around hers and held them tightly. They were still as soft as a feather.

"Where am I Sam?"

"The hospital. You ran out of the bar after we had an argument and were hit by a car as you were crossing the road. I shouldn't have let you leave, I was so scared that I was going to lose you"

"What were we fighting about?"

"Philip Semenko"

"I'm so sorry about that Sam. I shouldn't have lied to you"

"I shouldn't have told you what to do, it's your life after all"

They sat in silence, Sam still holding Diane's hands. a couple of lonely tears rolling down his cheeks.

"Sam, are you crying?"

Sam wiped his eyes, not dignifying her question with an answer, but that simple gesture was answer enough for Diane.

"I thought you would never cry over a woman" said Diane, a hint of laughter in her voice, met with an tearful half sigh.

"You're not just some woman to me. You're Diane, the love of my life" he paused, wiping another stray tear "I love you so much Diane"

"And I you Sam" She whispered, her voice thick with emotion "So much"

"Whilst I was waiting for you, I was thinking, 'What if she doesn't make it? What will I do without her?', and I couldn't answer because I don't think I could live without you"

"You stayed the whole time, despite us having a huge fight beforehand?"

"I heard the screech of brakes and I ran up to the road. I didn't know it was you as I was running up, but I heard screaming so i went to see what was going on. Then I saw you lying in the road and I ran to you, I've been with you ever since, except in the ER, they wouldn't let me in"

"Oh Sam."

"Well I wasn't exactly going to leave you was I?" he replied, half jokingly, half crabbily

"I'm sorry Sam, I didn't mean to doubt you, I just had no idea you were so...loving" Catching a look at Sam, she quickly retorted with an apology "Oh Sam that sounded horrible. I'm sorry"

"Why? It's true. I mean, I was horrible to you sometimes, but I really did, I do, love you"

Diane fell silent, passing out, her machine started beeping furiously

"Diane! Diane! Oh my God! Doctor! Doctor!" He screamed, panicking

A doctor soon ran in, calling the crash team and getting Diane prepared.

The crash team rushed in, forcing Sam into the corridor. He watched, terrified as they tried to resuscitate her.

Sam stood there crying as they pumped higher and higher amounts of voltage into her body. Such a lifeless body, he thought.

"Diane, please, Diane, come on" he whispered, praying that she would pull through...


	2. So so sorry

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters or 'Cheers' because if I did, I wouldn't be writing this, I'd be basking in my royalties

The rays of sunlight were poking through the blandly coloured blinds in the waiting room, causing Sam to wake up. The last 24 hours seemed like such a painful blur to him. as he got up, he craned his neck and stretched, the plastic chairs in the hospital had not given him the best nights sleep in the world.

Where's Diane? he thought, is she okay?

The intern was back, giving Sam a cup of coffee. They had made a connection over the past 24 hours but all he cared about was Diane.

"Where's Diane?" he asked, sleepily

"Intensive care. The doctors managed to revive her but she is in a deep coma. I can take you to her if you want"

Sam simply nodded, not sure as to what to say.

He followed the intern up the stairs and to Diane's room. He stared through the glass at her.

How could he go in? he thought. Her image reflected in his eyes. She looked so different. So weak. That wasn't his Diane, that was someone else, someone broken.

He reluctantly opened the door, moving towards her bed slowly. She wasn't even breathing for herself. Air being pumped into and around her lungs because she couldn't do it herself.

"Diane, I know you can't hear me but I just want you to know, I love you and I'm sorry"

He wanted to respond in a demonstration of love but she didn't. She couldn't.

"Diane. I am never going to leave you, I promise"

Diane just lay in her bed, motionless.

I have to call Helen, he thought. Helen Chambers, Diane's mother would be devastated

He whispered something to Diane, picking up her phonebook from her handbag

He went outside, placing a quarter in the payphone and dialling the number. When he couldn't get through, he slammed the phone against the wall, angry and upset.

The intern who seemed to be playing minder to him came over to calm him down and redialled the number for him.

"Hello? Mrs Chambers? It's Sam Malone, Diane's boyfriend. She's been in an accident Mrs Chambers. She was hit by a car. I'm at the hospital now. She's in a coma, it's pretty bad. okay, I'll see you soon, bye"

Sam hung up the phone, crying. he went back to Diane's room, telling her that Helen would be here soon and she shouldn't worry

"I'm sorry" he whispered "So so sorrry"

Helen Chambers arrived about an hour later. She had been crying in the car. Rushing into diane's room, she immediately moved pass Sam to her daughter, holding her hand, smoothing her hair and telling her it would be okay.

"Diane, Oh Diane, please please wake up. Please wake up" she cried in a fit of tears.

"Sam put his hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort her.

"How did this happen?" She sobbed

"Diane ran out of the bar and got hit by a car" said Sam, tears filling his eyes

"Why was she running out?" asked Helen, desperate for answers

"We had been fighting"

"So this is your fault then!" screamed Helen, slapping Sam all over his arms and face and screaming at him hysterically. Suddenly she stopped and broke down in Sam's arms.

"I didn't intend to hurt her. I stayed with her the whole time. I'm sorry"

Helen sat down ans wiped her eyes. "Sorry for lashing out at you Sam. What's wrong with her?"

"Punctured lung, broken bones, fractures.." said Sam, trailing off

Helen just nodded, crying for her little girl


	3. Sign from God?

Sam Malone had seen his girlfriend lying motionless on the cold Boston road. He had been with her in the ambulance, he had seen her in a coma and he visited her everyday.

Diane had been in a coma for the past month. Sam had visited everyday at the same time. sitting by her bead, reading to her, poems that he found at her apartment, some her own and letters that he had written to her. He wrote her a new letter everyday. It helped him express his feelings.

Cheers hadn't been the same without her. The first night that Sam had returned to his apartment after the accident, there was phone messages for Carla and Coach...and Norm, wondering why the bar was shut and where Sam was.

The next day, Sam went to the bar and told everyone what had happened. He entrusted Carla with a set of keys and told her that she could act as manager along with Coach, whilst he sorted out his head.

He kept Diane's apartment clean, keeping himself busy. He had been paying her rent and sometimes fell asleep at her apartment. The whole place had this Diane sense about it. He kept her candles burning, he kept her bills paid. He lived her life for her.

One night when he went to visit her. A doctor was waiting for him. As was the chief of medicine. Something was wrong.

"Mr Malone. We need to talk" said the doctor, leading him into Diane's room

"What's the matter?"

"Miss Chambers hasn't made any...progress since her accident and we feel that maybe it's the right time to turn off her life support machine. I'm sorry" said the doctor bluntly

"No! You can't do that to Diane! No!" screamed Sam, flipping out at the suggestion

"Of course we can't do it without your permission"

"Well then I'm not giving you my permission!. Diane is going to pull through! She's going to wake up!" screamed Sam, tears pouring down his face

The doctors left Sam by Diane's bed, taking her by the hand

"Diane. I'm not going to leave you. I'm going to let them take you away" cried Sam.

Sam's life has become so sad, so filled with pain. He had lost touch with friends, and had become a virtual recluse, only ever talking to Diane and truly believing that she could hear every word he said.

The endless tears. The insomnia, the cloud of darkness that had become a feauture in his life. He couldn't eat, he couldn't sleep, he couldn't live, knowing that she was the way she was, endlessly sleeping.

A nurse poked his head round the door a hour later, seeing Sam just holding her hand and whispering to her.

"Sir, I'm afraid you'll have to go home, sir" she said softly

Was the visiting time over already?

Sam got up, kissing Diane lightly on the forehead, and whispering her loved her

"Love you Diane" he sais softly, leaving the room and walking down the deserted corridor.

As Sam drove home, the rain battered his windscreen so badly that he couldn't see a thing. Pulling over, he switched on the radio where he heard a calming song, without words, just music.

Sam closed his eyes and listened to the music. The notes flowing through his head. it reminded him of Diane. She would have loved this song, he thought.

Sam began to peacefully drift off to sleep. His cares flowing away.

Suddenly Sam jolted up, hearing a knock on the window. A young man was knocking on his window, soaking wet.

"Are you okay sir?" he said, concerned

Sam didn't know what to say.

After a silence, he asked the man where he was heading.

"Beacon Hill"

"Want a lift? I'm heading that way myself" asked Sam, who wanted the company

"Why thank you" said the man, getting in.

Sam began to drive off, the rain had become less heavy

"Hey, are you Sam Malone?" asked the man

"Yeah, that's me"

"Sorry to hear about your girlfriend" he said solemnly

"How did you know that?"

"I was there. I saw it all" he pasued for a minute "How's she doing?"

"They want me to bring off her life support machine. I just can't do it"

"Well Sam, only you know what to do"

"How will I know that I know?"

"There'll be a clear sign. Can you drop here please?"

"But this is nowhere near Beacon Hill"

The man gave him a look and with that Sam sighed and pulled over.

The man got out of the car and shut the door

"By the way, what's your name?"

"I think you know Sam" he said, walking off.

"That was 'Lucia di Lammermoor'" said the radio presenter

Diane's favourite opera.

Suddenly Sam realised something.

Why was he listening to classical music? His dial was always tuned to sports

Then it hit Sam like a truck...it was a sign. The man, Lucia Di Lammermoor, the radio station.

He knew what he had to do...


End file.
